Bus Number 394
by forensicsfan
Summary: COMPLETEA man is mysteriously killed during the evening commute, and our crew of CSIs is out to find the killer. Will some of CSIs find a little romance as they examine the evidence?
1. The Evening Commute

The Friday evening commute started out like any other. Bus number 394 pulled out of the downtown transit center threading it's way through the more traditional business district, toward the Strip, and then out to the suburban developments that ringed Las Vegas. Driver Ed Connley greeted each of his regulars as they got on, this was his last route of the day. Chatter was down to a minimum as it usually was on public transportation. People just wanted to shut the world out and get home to their families. Seldom did anyone talk to each other. They may sit next to each other everyday, but they seldom talked. Mostly, they read the newspaper, put on headphones and listened to music, or just napped until their stop was announced. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary as Ed pulled the number 394 into the bus barn for the evening. Not until the sound like a watch alarm went off near the rear of the bus. He parked the bus and walked to the back of the bus expecting to find someone's missing watch. What he saw stopped him dead in his tracks. Somewhere along the route, someone had taken a knife to the throat of the man slumped against the corner of the back seat of the bus. Blood soaked the cushion. Not much had made it's way to the floor. The man's watch continued to beep, a reminder for something he wouldn't need now. 


	2. Candid Camera?

Gil Grissom arrived at the Las Vegas Transit bus barn. He approached homicide detective Jim Brass who was already on the scene.  
  
"Brass, what do we have?" Grissom asked dispensing with formalities.  
  
"Hey, Gil, nice to see you too. " Brass responded with a somewhat sarcastic smile. "Male vic, about 42 years of age. Bus driver found him in the back of the bus at the end of his shift when he heard a watch alarm go off. Figured someone lost their watch and thought he'd drop it by lost and found on his way in. When he went back to check, he found our victim."  
  
"Anyone touch the body?" Grissom asked, hoping that no one had disturbed his crime scene.  
  
"Lucky for you, our bus driver is a Discover Channel junkie. He said he's seen enough of the Forensic Files to know not to touch anything," Brass answered coyly. "And no, none of my officers have touched anything either."  
  
Grissom smirked and raised an eyebrow, "Thanks, Jim."  
  
Brass turned to talk to one of his officers when Grissom asked a question. "Brass, does this bus have a surveillance camera on board?"  
  
"Standard on all Las Vegas Transit busses since 2001." Brass answered.  
  
Grissom looked over at Brass with an eyebrow raised, "Let's hope our killer smiled, we've got him on candid camera." 


	3. A Little Print Powder Anyone?

Catherine Willows was tired. Lindsey had been sick so she hadn't had much sleep before going to work that night. That was before the bus murder. Now she was bone tired. Shift still had a few hours left and she had been processing the scene for about 5 hours. Trying to find a viable fingerprint on a transit bus was a nightmare. But Catherine was good. If anyone could find a print, she could. She took the same care 5 hours in that she had at the beginning. Years of experience had shown her that care in collecting the evidence often made the difference between a conviction and an acquittal. They didn't know if this was an isolated incident, or just the beginning of something more ominous. As it was, all of Las Vegas was recoiling in terror. It was up to the CSIs to do their job to the best of their ability, and let the evidence lead them to the killer.  
  
Warrick Brown walked up to Catherine in the back of the bus, "Got anything, Cath?"  
  
"Lot's of dusting powder, and not a single viable print." Catherine looked up at Warrick and answered in frustration. "But who knows, we might get something off the seat fabric or the vic's body. You can finish up the photos in here now, I've covered as much as I can. Where's the rest of the team?"  
  
"Nick and Sara took the video from the surveillance camera back to the lab to try and isolate individual faces for the driver to identify. Grissom went with the coroner." Warrick replied.  
  
"Has the tow truck gotten here yet to haul the bus back to the impound lot?" Catherine stretched as she asked Warrick.  
  
"On it's way from what Officer Friendly out there said about 15 minutes ago. Soon as they load it up, we can be out of here." Warrick answered as he continued to photograph the scene. 


	4. How's It Coming?

Grissom sauntered into the video lab where Nick and Sara had been going over the video from the bus.  
  
"Catherine and Warrick back yet?" Grissom asked no one in particular.  
  
Nick answered, "No, Gris. Warrick called about 10 minutes ago and said that the tow truck had just pulled up to haul the bus back to the impound lot. They were coming back straight away after that."  
  
"Thanks, Nick. How's it coming here." Grissom inquired.  
  
Sara responded, "Slow going, Gris. We've been at this for 3 hours and we've got a few faces, but none of them are the vic's yet."  
  
"Well, let me know when you've got something. As soon as Al determines time of death, we'll have something more to go on about who we can eliminate as a suspect on that tape." Grissom replied. "Oh, as soon as Catherine and Warrick get in I want to see everyone in the break room."  
  
"Sure, Gris," Sara and Nick mumbled turning back to the video monitor. 


	5. A Little Coffee

Catherine walked into the break room and went directly to the coffee maker. She pulled down a cup from the cup rack and poured the dark liquid just shy of the top of the cup. She was just about to take a sip when Warrick sauntered in behind her and commented, "Cath, I'm not so sure you want to drink that stuff, no telling how long it's been there. You may want to have Greg analyze it to make sure it's not toxic."  
  
A smile broke over Catherine's face as she turned to face him. "That would be true anytime anything goes through this thing, but it smells like Greg's special blend and I'm bone tired, so I'm willing to take a chance."  
  
"Glad to hear you like my coffee so well, Catherine. Premium Kenyan blend, deep rich flavor with high notes of berry" Greg Sanders commented with a raised eyebrow as he walked into the break room.  
  
"Sanders, you sound like a walking Starbuck's ad," Warrick chuckled as he too pulled a cup down from the rack and filled it up.  
  
"Only the best for the best." Greg answered as he winked at Catherine.  
  
"Thanks, Greggo." Catherine replied flatly as she smirked at Warrick with a knowing look.  
  
Just then Grissom, Sara, and Nick walked into the break room. As Grissom began to talk, Nick walked over to the counter grabbed two cups from the rack and poured him and Sara some coffee. He handed Sara her cup and then turned and leaned against the counter.  
  
"I'm glad you're all here," Grissom stated. "We've got an ID on the vic. Michael Stone, age 45, financial planner, married, father of two. The wife, Rhonda Stone, is in talking with Brass. Catherine, I'd like you to join Brass and see if you can find out if she can give you any clues as to who might want her husband dead. Warrick, I'd like you to contact his firm and check out his client history. Brass will help you get any of the warrants you need. Nick, Sara, I want you to keep up with video analysis, I want to know as soon as you finish, so we can schedule you to get with the bus driver and see if he can help identify the passengers. Greg, anything from trace yet?"  
  
"Not yet, we're still trying to see if we can get any prints off the vic's clothes or the seat fabric from the bus." Greg replied.  
  
Grissom looked at Greg as if to ask what he was waiting for.  
  
"Right, Boss, I'm on it." Greg got up and went back to the Trace Evidence Lab to continue processing.  
  
"Ok, people, as soon as shift is over I want all of you out of here to get some rest. Yes, you too, Sara," Grissom nodded toward Sara who had raised her eyes in protest, "I'm going to need you all in early for next shift, so please try and come back fresh." With that Grissom, Catherine, Warrick, and Greg wandered out of the break room and back to their respective tasks.  
  
Nick looked at Sara with a wry grin as he sipped his coffee.  
  
"What?!" Sara asked as she put her coffee down on the counter.  
  
"Nothing," Nick replied with an even bigger grin.  
  
"Spill it!" Sara fumed half-heartedly with a smile on her face. She turned to face Nick, blocking him into a corner.  
  
"I was just noticing that teacher's pet got reprimanded for working too hard, that's all," he said as he ducked out past her as she playfully swatted at his arm.  
  
"You're going to pay for that, Stokes." Sara stood with her arms crossed and one eyebrow raised with a smile that said 'I dare you'.  
  
"I'll look forward to it, Sara," Nick teased back with a wink, "But right now, I think I hear the video room calling us." 


	6. Grieving Widow

As Catherine joined Brass, who was already talking with Rhonda Stone, she took in the woman's appearance. Rhonda Stone was mid to later thirties, blond, petite, and apparently wracked with grief.  
  
"Mrs. Stone, can you think of anyone who would want to harm your husband?" Brass inquired.  
  
"No, that's just it. I can't imagine anyone wanting to hurt Mike. He's always helping the neighbors out and people at work just love him." She replied numbly.  
  
Catherine interrupted, "Mrs. Stone, I'm Catherine Willows from the Crime Lab."  
  
Rhonda Stone acknowledge Catherine, "Ms. Willows."  
  
"Just call me Catherine." Catherine smiled at her to try and put her at ease. "Mrs. Stone, did your husband usually take the bus?"  
  
Rhonda Stone looked up at Catherine with tears beginning in the corners of her eyes. "No, that's just it. He never rode the bus. His car was in for it's 60,000 mile service and he thought he'd take the bus instead of renting a car like he usually would since he didn't have any client meetings today. If he'd just rented a car, or taken mine, he'd still be alive." With this, Rhonda Stone put her head onto her arms on the table in front of her and broke into sobs.  
  
Brass and Catherine exchanged glances and Brass nodded. Catherine placed a comforting hand on Rhonda Stone's shoulder. "Mrs. Stone, Detective Brass here is going to take you home now. If you can think of anything, I mean anything, please give me a call."  
  
"Thank you, Catherine." She replied looking up finally through tear stained eyes. "I just don't know how we'll go on. Our kids.Mike and the kids are my whole life."  
  
Brass escorted Rhonda Stone out of the interview room. Catherine mulled over the short interaction she'd just had with Rhonda Stone. She appeared to be sincere, and she was convinced that no one would harm her husband. Catherine knew they needed to dig deeper, to see what the evidence would tell them. She got up from her chair and proceeded out of the room and down the hall to fill Grissom in on her interview with Rhonda Stone. 


	7. Headache

Gil Grissom sat at his desk with what appeared to be the beginning of a headache reading a forensic journal. Sheriff Mobely had made it abundantly clear to him that they needed to have a suspect in hand by the time the morning commute started on Monday to restore public confidence that their transit system was safe. That left them with a little more than 48 hours by his last count. He was sure he wasn't going to see the outside of the lab until this was over.  
  
He looked up as he heard someone clear their throat. Catherine stood there with a smirk on her face as she leaned up against the door jam. "I'd ask you for a penny for your thoughts, but by the looks of your face, I'm not sure I'd want to know what you're thinking."  
  
Grissom raised an eyebrow, "Nice to see you too, Catherine. Mobely is hot on this one, and I'm afraid no matter how many times you try and explain it to him, he just doesn't understand that you can't rush science."  
  
"I can imagine. And with your people skills too." Catherine replied with a smile.  
  
"So how'd it go with the vic's wife?" Grissom asked.  
  
Catherine shifted gears, "Didn't get much. She was pretty broken up. Only piece of information I got from her that was new was that her husband didn't usually ride the bus. Apparently, his car was in for regular service and instead of renting a car like he usually did, he took the bus. Something about not having any client meetings for the day."  
  
"Good work, Catherine." Grissom said looking around his desk for a bottle of Tylenol.  
  
Catherine reached over and pulled the bottle from under a pile of forensic journals and handed it to him. She smiled and walked out of his office calling over her shoulder. "Thanks, Grissom. Get some rest."  
  
Grissom just waved half heartedly and turned back to the forensic journal he'd been reading. 


	8. Breakfast?

An hour after shift was supposed to end, the CSIs, with the exception of Grissom had finally left the lab. Catherine went home to see Lindsey before she went off to school and then immediately fell into a much needed deep sleep.  
  
Grissom had fallen asleep in his office over his forensic journal, and no one was going to disturb him.  
  
By the time Nick and Sara had finished up in the video lab, Warrick had already left, destination unknown. They walked out into the parking lot together.  
  
"Hungry?", Nick asked as he squinted in the Las Vegas sunlight.  
  
"I am beyond starved!" Sara answered. Taking in Nick's disheveled appearance she commented and smiled, "I can't believe how long we were sitting in there." She pointed at Nick's chin, "I think you've got the beginnings of Rip Van Winkle's beard there, Stokes."  
  
"Very funny, Sara. That's just a little bit of 6am shadow." Nick said with a chuckle. "Want to get some breakfast before you head home?"  
  
"Sounds good, Nick, where to?" Sara asked looking up through her lowered sunglasses.  
  
"I know this great place. Doesn't charge much. Great food. Always open." Nick replied with a wink. "In fact the cook is a personal friend of mine. He might cut you a deal."  
  
Sara laughed, "Let me guess, Café Nick."  
  
"And she's smart too." Nick replied as he dodged Sara's playful swat at his arm. 


	9. 007

Nick pulled the Tahoe into his driveway and turned off the ignition. Sara pulled up behind him in hers. Nick unlocked the front door and allowed Sara to enter first. As he closed the front door, Sara took a quick look around his house and turned to looked at him, "Nick, you are a neat freak."  
  
"Nice observation, Miss CSI." Nick replied with a smile. "Now, what would you like for breakfast?" He cocked his head to one side with his arms crossed over his chest.  
  
Sara smirked back at him, "Ok, I'll leave work at the door. I don't know, anything without meat sounds good."  
  
"Ok, but if you don't like it, don't blame me." Nick said as he headed into the kitchen. "If you want, you can turn on the TV, just make yourself at home."  
  
Sara settled herself on Nick's couch and looked for the TV remote. She laughed as she took in 5 remotes lined up on the coffee table. "Nick, do I need a degree in rocket science to figure out which one of these remotes turns on the TV?"  
  
"Very funny, Miss Smarty Pants." Nick replied as he walked out of the kitchen with an apron on. Sara raised an eyebrow at the ensemble. Nick cut her expression short, "No comments on the apron, Sara. It's this remote here." He drawled as he turned on the TV and then walked back into the kitchen.  
  
Sara, looked at Nick's retreating form, and then back to the TV, which was on the Discovery Channel. She called out to Nick, "So is this why you know so much about birds?"  
  
Nick voice called out from the kitchen, "Why does everyone think that? If you look at the bookcase on the wall, you'll see that I actually own books, Sara."  
  
"Ok, ok, Nick, just teasing." Sara got up and walked over to the bookcase noting a row of forensic science books and journals, as well as numerous books on birds. As she was perusing them, Nick came out of the kitchen with two plates in hand. Sara turned around, "Oh, that smells so good. What is it?"  
  
Nick replied with a grin, "I call it the James Bond Special, cause if I told you, I'd have to kill you."  
  
Sara leveled a gaze at Nick that would make most men shake in fear, "Very funny, Stokes." She accepted the plate and sat back down on the couch. Nick put his plate down and returned to the kitchen for a couple of glasses of orange juice. He placed them on the coffee table and grabbed his plate.  
  
A groan was offered up next to him. He turned and looked at Sara smiling. "So, do you like it, Sara?"  
  
"Nick, this is amazing. Are you sure you won't tell me what's in it?" She asked giving him doe eyes.  
  
Nick just laughed. "Nice try, Sara, but it's going to take a lot more than that to get this out of me." He continued eating and dodged as Sara swatted at his arm.  
  
The two settled into a comfortable silence as they ate Nick's special concoction. The Discovery Channel was airing a New Detectives marathon, so they discussed whether they had heard of the cases being profiled as they watched.  
  
As they finished, they placed their plates onto the coffee table and leaned back into the deep leather couch content to watch a little TV.  
  
Within a few minutes, both Nick and Sara had drifted off to sleep unaware that they were leaning into each other. 


	10. New Day

Warrick sauntered into the lab feeling quite refreshed. For once he hadn't gone out after work. He'd gone straight home and gone to sleep. He might have to try that more often. He was feeling pretty good. As he poured himself a cup of coffee, he wondered where the rest of the night shift team was. As he turned and took a sip, Catherine walked in.  
  
"Are you sure you can trust that?" She flashed him a smile. She too had gotten some much needed sleep and was feeling ready to tackle just about anything the shift could throw at them.  
  
"Morning to you too, Cath." Warrick smiled back.  
  
Gil Grissom walked into the break room. He unlike Catherine and Warrick, had not gotten a good night's sleep. A good night's sleep was hard to get when your pillow is a desk and a forensic journal. He was still wearing the same clothes he had on when they had left early that morning and was looking a bit rumpled.  
  
"Morning, Gris" Warrick and Catherine said in unison.  
  
"Morning, Catherine. Morning, Warrick." Grissom smiled. "Anyone seen Nick and Sara?"  
  
"Nope. We both just got here ourselves." Warrick answered.  
  
"Catherine, why don't you try Sara, and Warrick, give Nick a call. We need to get back on this case as soon as possible. Sheriff Mobley is breathing down my neck and calling every hour on the hour on this one. He wants us to have something before the morning commute on Monday, and the last thing we need is for Ecklie to get involved." With that, Grissom raised an eyebrow and walked back to his office. 


	11. Late for Work

Sara shifted in her sleep but was having a hard time moving. In her dreamlike state, she felt a soft, warm breeze on the back of her neck. As she stretched and then relaxed again, she felt an arm tighten around her waist and pull her back into a warm male body. Oh, that feels so good. This has got to be a dream. Sara rested into the embrace, not yet awake, yet not quite asleep anymore. As she lay there, willing herself to stay asleep, soft warm kisses started trailing up her neck toward her jaw. She craned her neck enjoying the sensations they were causing. As she turned her head toward the kisses, she felt a soft, strong pair of lips on hers. She turned her body into the embrace and kissed back. Lips parted, tongues started a slow intricate dance. Sara felt fingers slowly stroking her side, lifting the edge of her shirt, fingers caressing the bare skin. Sara felt weight pushing her back into the couch and her arms with a will of their own, moved to caress the strong muscular back. A hand moved up under her shirt and a thumb caressed the skin just below her ribs. Sara groaned. Oh, this feels so good, this is definitely too good to be a dream. She suddenly felt fully awake. If this isn't a dream then what am I doing? Where am I? Oh, my word! Sara opened her eyes, and broke the kiss breathless.  
  
"Nick?" Sara cringed and blushed.  
  
Nick's eye's flew open. He too had felt like he'd been dreaming. "Sara?!" He blushed with an awareness of what they had been doing.  
  
They stared at each other for a moment their foreheads inches apart, not quite sure what to do, not quite aware of the blushing of the others cheeks, Nick unaware that his hand was still under Sara's shirt, Sara very aware of where Nick's hand was.  
  
Suddenly, the ringing of a cell phone on Sara's belt interrupted. Still intertwined with Nick, Sara reached for her phone, then Nick's cell phone rang at his belt. He reached for it, realizing where his hand had been and blushed.  
  
"Stokes"  
  
"Sidle"  
  
They answered at the same time, Nick still resting on top of Sara.  
  
"Hey, Cath. Yeah, I overslept. I'll be in right away. Yeah, thanks." Sara spoke, not taking her eyes off Nick.  
  
"Warrick, yeah, man. I overslept. Yeah, tell Gris I'm on my way." Nick said, not taking his eyes off Sara.  
  
Nick and Sara ended their calls simultaneously.  
  
Sara, still looking at Nick, spoke first. "We should probably get into the lab."  
  
"Yeah, we should," Nick replied averting his gaze from Sara.  
  
"Hey, Nick?"  
  
"Yeah, Sara?" Nick looked back at Sara.  
  
"It would be a whole lot easier if you could get off me first." Sara smiled feeling a bit flustered.  
  
Nick blushed and tried to extricate himself from Sara, but their legs were tangled and all he succeeded in doing was pulling them both onto the floor into a heap with Sara on top of him.  
  
"Sara?"  
  
"Yeah, Nick?"  
  
"I don't think that worked." He smiled up at her.  
  
"Leave it to a woman to get the job done." She grinned as she finally untangled herself from Nick and stood up. She offered Nick a hand and helped him up. 


	12. What was that?

As Catherine called Sara and Warrick called Nick, they exchanged surprise glances. When they finished their calls, Catherine was the first to speak. "War, did I just hear what I thought I heard?"  
  
"I was going to ask you the same thing, Cath" Warrick replied with a bemused grin on his face.  
  
"Nick and Sara. Together. Close enough that I could hear your entire conversation with Nick on Sara's phone, not to mention some heavy breathing." Catherine stated with a bit of disbelief that gave way to a conspiratorial smile. "Do they really think that they are going to escape the inquisition on this one?"  
  
"On what one, Catherine?" Grissom asked as he walked into the break room.  
  
"Oh, just the interrogation we'll have when get a suspect on this case, Gil." Catherine quickly answered averting her eyes toward Warrick.  
  
Grissom, not quite believing her, but accepting it at this point, asked, "So were you able to get a hold of Nick and Sara?"  
  
"Yeah, Gris," Warrick answered, "They're both on the way in. They both seemed to have overslept." Warrick raised an eyebrow at Catherine as Grissom looked at his watch.  
  
"Ok, thanks." With that, Grissom left the break room in search of Greg to see if the lab tech had any new results from the samples he'd been processing.  
  
"Nice, Cath. You really think Gris bought that one?" Warrick chuckled at her.  
  
"Not really, but I'm not really interested in being the receiving end of the Grissom Inquisition either." Catherine answered. 


	13. A Discussion of the Evidence

Grissom made his way down the hall from the break room toward the lab where Greg was analyzing samples from the bus crime scene. Loud noises, which Grissom could only assume Greg called music, blared from the room. Grissom walked over and turned the volume down. Greg, who had been dancing around the lab as he worked, stopped mid-step and turned around. "Hey, boss, what can I do you for?"  
  
"Greg, this is a place of business, not a dance club." He answered with a raised eyebrow.  
  
Greg quickly shifted gears, "Ok, I'm assuming you're here for an update on the case. Turning the ZZ Top CD down aside. Anyway, I've been analyzing the blood on the fabric from the seat your vic was found on. The blood is from a single donor. The vic's. I've also been analyzing the blood from the vic's clothes. There I found two donors. The vic's and a mystery donor. I ran the mystery donor through CODIS and it came up empty. Now, something interesting I did find was a stray fiber that didn't fit into the whole bus scenario. It is a black triangular fiber, synthetic, upholstery most likely, but not from the bus, the fabric from the bus seats are blue. Also, no DNA. I also found some hair, not unusual in a man our vic's age, but this hair is non-human. Appears to be feline in nature. Both were found on the underside of your vic's tie." Greg handed Grissom a printout with the detailed analytical information on the samples.  
  
"Thanks, Greg." Grissom replied looking over the data.  
  
"That's what I'm here for, boss." Greg smiled. "Let me know if there's anything else I can do for you. Greg's my name, DNA's my game."  
  
Grissom leveled a gaze at Greg silently asking if he was done yet.  
  
"Well samples call." Greg turned and went back to what he was working on.  
  
Grissom took the data and walked out of the lab and down the hall towards the break room.  
  
Nick and Sara finally arrived at work. As they walked down the hall toward the break room, they exchanged nervous glances at each other, knowing they would have to talk later about what had happened at Nick's. As they entered the break room they found the rest of the team was waiting.  
  
"Nick. Sara. Nice of you to join us." Grissom raised an eyebrow and noted that Sara wore the same clothes that she had left in that morning. "How's the video analysis coming? I want to bring the bus driver in so you can over it with him and try and put some names to faces."  
  
"Almost done, Grissom. Warrick was checking with LV Transit. Apparently, most bus riders use a card that acts as a credit card. It keeps track of how much they still have on their account. So we can track who was on the bus from that." Sara explained.  
  
Nick interjected, "Yeah, also, we learned that the drivers have a log they keep that tracks how many people get on at each stop, and they have an onboard computer that tracks all transactions for a particular stop, so we should be able to tell who got on and when, except for cash fares. But it also keeps track of how many cash fares they have per stop. We're just waiting for Warrick to get us the list."  
  
Warrick responded to the unspoken question, "I'll have it in about an hour. Brass was getting the warrant and then we were going to head over there."  
  
"Good work." Grissom replied. "Oh, Nick, Greg found some fibers and a hair you might want to take a look at. We're going to need to get samples of fibers from the vic's home, car, and office to compare them to. You might want to ask Catherine for help on this since she's already met the vic's wife. I'm sure you'll have no problem getting any warrant that you need, Mobley is hot on this one and the mayor isn't too far behind. Sara, I'd like you to print out what you've got and get with Warrick about that list from LV Transit. Once you have that, have Brass pick up the driver and you can start going over the pictures with him to see if he noticed anything unusual from his passengers."  
  
"Sure, Gris." Sara replied, a bit relieved to not have to work with Nick all day.  
  
"Yeah, thanks, Gris." Nick added, also a bit glad that he could concentrate on work and not worry about Sara for a while.  
  
Catherine took in the whole exchange silently and inwardly chuckled. She was going to have fun grilling Nick about Sara. She'd make it long and drawn out. 


	14. Cell Phone Technology

Nick entered the lab where Greg was working, music blaring. The lab tech didn't hear Nick until he'd put a hand on his shoulder, causing him to jump. "Nick, you shouldn't sneak up on people like that." Greg said gasping.  
  
"Well, Greg," Nick began as he reached over and turned the music down, " if you didn't have the volume up so high, you might hear a thing or two." Nick smiled. "Grissom says you have something for me to look at."  
  
"Yeah, I assume that he told you about our mystery fiber. It doesn't match the upholstery from the bus, so I'm thinking that maybe our killer transferred it to the vic unknowingly. Also, mystery hair. Looks feline. Only one hair, so I'm thinking that your vic didn't have a cat, that maybe the killer put it there unknowingly as well." Greg surmised.  
  
Nick, standing with his arms crossed over his chest, smiled, "Quite a stretch there, Greg, but stranger things have happened. I'm going to get some more samples for you to compare those to, so you'd better cancel all your hot dates." Nick smirked in jest.  
  
Greg replied, "Oh, Catherine and Sara will be so disappointed, but since their both working on the case too, I suppose the evening's not a total loss."  
  
Nick just rolled his eyes at Greg and went back to find Catherine. He found her in the break room. She had just finished her coffee and was washing out her cup in the sink. "Hey, Cath, ready to head to the vic's house to get some fiber samples."  
  
"Sure. Hey, Nicky, did you oversleep?" Catherine asked innocently.  
  
"Yeah." Nick replied distracted by thoughts of where he had been sleeping, a faint blush crept into his cheeks. "You want to drive or do you want me to?" he asked trying to focus on the task at hand.  
  
"I'll drive. You still look a little tired." Catherine replied as she thought about how she was going to make him squirm until he told her what was going on between him and Sara.  
  
"Thanks. Yeah, I guess I slept a little funny, my neck's sore." Nick answered rolling his neck from side to side trying to loosen it up a bit.  
  
"Ok, let's go, Nicky." Catherine said outwardly as she lead the way to her Tahoe. Inwardly though she chuckled to herself about just how Nick's neck might have gotten sore. The two CSIs drove to the vic's house. Nick filled her in on what Greg had found on the way. Catherine led the way to the door and rang the door bell.  
  
"Catherine." Rhonda Stone answered the bell still looking every part the grief stricken widow.  
  
"Mrs. Stone, we have some new evidence in your husband's case and we were wondering if it would be ok if we took some fiber samples from your carpet and from both of your vehicles. We found some stray fibers on your husband's clothing and we want to make sure it didn't originate in your home." Catherine explained.  
  
"I'm not sure I understand," Rhonda Stone replied.  
  
Nick introduced himself to Rhonda Stone, "Mrs. Stone, I'm Nick Stokes, I work with Catherine at the Crime Lab. I'm sorry for your loss." Always the soft hearted member of the CSI team, Nick's words were sincere. "If we find that the fibers didn't come from your home, there is a possibility that the killer may have unknowingly transferred it to your husband."  
  
"Mr. Stokes, Catherine, please come in." Rhonda Stone answered.  
  
"Just call me Nick, ma'am." Nick replied.  
  
Rhonda Stone managed a weak smile at Nick.  
  
Catherine and Nick gathered a variety of fiber samples from the carpets in each room of the house. They also took samples from the upholstery on the couch and chairs. After they finished gathering samples from the house, Rhonda Stone led them to the garage where they took samples from the seats and carpet of each vehicle. As they gathered the samples and prepared to leave, Nick asked, "Mrs. Stone, do you have any pets?"  
  
Rhonda Stone looked at bit perplexed but answered, "No, Mike and our youngest Ryan are allergic. Robby always wanted a cat, but we just couldn't. Why do you ask?"  
  
"No reason, ma'am, just an animal lover," Nick flashed her a big Texas grin.  
  
Rhonda Stone showed Catherine and Nick out and they made their way to the Tahoe. Catherine spoke first, "Nice work there, Nicky."  
  
"Just want to rule out the cat hair with out being too obvious." Nick winked.  
  
Catherine raised an eyebrow in return as she started the ignition of the Tahoe. Nick just laughed. As they pulled out of the driveway and headed toward Mr. Stone's former place of employment Catherine decided to begin her inquisition. "So, Nick, what did you do after shift yesterday?"  
  
"Oh, not much, ate some breakfast, watched part of the New Detective's marathon on the Discovery Channel, and fell asleep." Nick replied making conversation. "What about you?"  
  
"Had breakfast with my baby, and went to sleep after she went to my sister's" Catherine couldn't help but smile when she talked about her daughter. "So, anything exciting on the New Detectives?"  
  
"Nothing I haven't read about already in forensic journals." Nick replied.  
  
"You watch the Discovery Channel a lot, Nick." Catherine stated.  
  
"I guess I do, but contrary to popular belief, Catherine, I do read books." Nick flashed her a lopsided grin.  
  
"It's that whole rocks for jocks thing. Just because you're a nice looking guy, people assume you can't be smart. You're one hell of a CSI Nick, so I know you read books. I get the same thing with a spin." Catherine replied smiling back.  
  
"Beautiful woman, how the hell can she be that smart? Something like that?" Nick finished for her.  
  
"Yeah." Catherine finished.  
  
They rode along in silence for a while. Nearing the office building where Michael Stone had work up until his untimely death, Catherine turned to Nick again and asked, "Nick, did you see that technology special on Discovery. The one about cell phones?"  
  
Nick thought for a moment and then answered, "I don't believe so, what was it about exactly?"  
  
"Oh, I just thought it was interesting. They actually profiled the ones we use at CSI. Very interesting information." Catherine began.  
  
"Really, like what?" Nick questioned.  
  
"Well, for starters, it's one of the most powerful models available, but then that's why the department uses them in the first place. But what not a lot of people are aware of is that it blocks out a ton of background noise, but only to about 2 feet. So anything within that 2 foot radius of the phone gets picked up and transmitted crystal clear to whomever you might be talking to. Don't you think that's interesting, Nick?" Catherine looked over to see Nick begin to squirm a bit in his seat.  
  
"Uh, yeah." Nick was feeling nervous. It could be coincidental, but Catherine did call Sara this morning when they were very much in each other's personal space. He wondered if she had heard him in the background of her call with Sara. Spying the office building they were looking for, Nick decided to change the subject. "Catherine, I think this is the place up here on the right."  
  
Catherine pulled up to the curb and parked, satisfied that Nick knew she knew something. The two CSIs made their way to the office and were met by the manager of the firm Michael Stone worked for and who had kindly agreed to meet them there on a Saturday evening. There wasn't much to the visit. They took a couple of carpet fiber samples and a couple of samples from the vic's chair. They were in and out in under 30 minutes and back on their way to CSI headquarters. 


	15. LV Transit

Brass had gotten the warrant they needed and now Warrick and Sara were heading toward the LV Transit business offices. Being a Saturday evening, they had made sure that someone would be there to meet them to give them the required records. As Warrick drove, he looked over at Sara and stated the obvious, "Looks like you slept in your clothes, Sidle."  
  
A faint blush colored Sara's cheeks before she answered, "Yeah, I fell asleep on the couch watching the Discovery Channel and didn't wake up until Catherine called, I figured I'd change later when there was break in the action and I had time to take a shower."  
  
Warrick looked over at Sara again and raised an eyebrow, "Oh, so that's what that smell is, and I thought maybe there was a DB under the seat."  
  
Sara leveled a gaze at Warrick that would cause most men to run the other direction in a serpentine fashion. Warrick wasn't most men, so he just laughed. "People might start talking if you show up wearing the same clothes you had on the day before. Especially, when you walk in with Nick."  
  
Sara couldn't control the flush of color in her cheeks. She managed to glare at him, "Just what are you implying, Warrick?" She wasn't willing to give up any information easily.  
  
Warrick knew he had hooked her, "Nothing, Sara." He raised an eyebrow and continued, "Should I be implying something?"  
  
"Uh, no." Sara finished. "Hey, the address is up here on the left." They pulled into the parking lot of the LV Transit business office. In short order, they had obtained the records and made their way back to CSI headquarters. 


	16. Do You Dream About Me?

Looking into a high powered microscope, Nick was comparing the fiber samples he and Catherine had gathered to the triangular fiber they had found on the vic's tie. So far, he had not found a match. He was deep in thought when Sara walked in and stopped next to him, "Anything interesting, Nick?" she asked.  
  
Nick looked up from the scope and replied, "Hey, Sar. No, I've been comparing the samples that Catherine and I got earlier to the fiber found on the vic, but nothing matches so far. How did it go at LV Transit?"  
  
She smiled as she leaned her elbows on the table and rested her chin on her fists, "I've been buried under paper since Warrick and I got back, but I just talked to Brass and he was on his way to pick up the driver. They should be here in about half an hour."  
  
"Good." He smiled at Sara, then a more serious expression came over his face, "Hey, Sara. Maybe this isn't the best time to bring this up, but I think we should talk about earlier."  
  
Sara averted her eyes from Nick and then looked back at him before she responded, "Yeah, I guess we should."  
  
Nick began, "I wanted to apologize to you. I, uh, didn't invite you over so I could fall asleep on you, literally."  
  
Sara's cheeks began to flush pink remembering the very personal encounter they had shared and she turned her eyes from Nick again.  
  
He began again, "I think I must have still been asleep when we uh, I thought I was dreaming," Nick's cheeks turned red as he tried to continue, "There is just no good way to say this, is there?"  
  
Sara looked back at him and chuckled, "Who thought that Nick Stokes could be rendered speechless? So do you dream about me often?" she asked winking, only half joking.  
  
Nick grinned at Sara, "Wouldn't you like to know?"  
  
Sara swatted at Nick's arm, but remained silent.  
  
Nick's face once again wore a serious expression, "Sara, I really am sorry. I feel like I took advantage of you without permission. That's not my style. I feel really bad."  
  
Sara looked Nick in the eye with a serious expression on her face, "Nick, stop. You don't need to beat yourself up. I mean it's not like I didn't kiss you back." Realizing what she was saying, her face began to tinge pink and she turned away.  
  
A lopsided grin erupted on Nick's face, "Yes, you did, Sara Sidle, yes, you did."  
  
Sara looked back at him and took note of his expression. She blushed, but didn't avert her gaze this time. "So, was it is as good as your dreams about me?"  
  
"Better, much better, Sara." Nick admitted.  
  
"You weren't so bad yourself," Sara whispered and looked away.  
  
"Not bad, eh?" Nick asked.  
  
"Ok, so pretty good." Sara blushed a deeper shade of pink still not looking directly at Nick.  
  
"Just pretty good?" Nick pressed nudging her arm.  
  
"Ok, so it was better than I, uh." Sara's face was quite red.  
  
"Oh, so are you saying that you dream about me too, Sara?" Nick whispered huskily in her ear.  
  
All she could manage was, "Yeah," as she looked into Nick's eyes.  
  
They remained that way for several minutes just looking at each other until they heard someone behind them clearing their throat. As they both turned in the direction of the noise, Catherine arched an eyebrow and leaned on the door frame, "Did I interrupt something?"  
  
"Uh, no!" they both replied simultaneously, jumping apart.  
  
Continuing, Catherine said, "Yeah, ok. Anyway, Brass is here with the bus driver. You might want to go down and talk to him." With that she turned on her heals and walked down the hall muttering under her breath and smiling "Those two are so busted."  
  
Sara looked over at Nick after Catherine left the room, "How long do you think she was standing there?"  
  
"Long enough to know we should both expect an interrogation. I got the first dose on our trip to get the fiber samples earlier." Nick replied.  
  
Curious, Sara raised an eyebrow as if to say 'do tell'.  
  
Nick continued, "She told me some story about how our cell phones block out most background noise except for what is within about 2 feet. I think she might have heard me through your phone when she called to wake you up earlier." Nick looked down with an embarrassed look on his face.  
  
Sara laughed. Nick looked up at her. Sara grinned, "Yeah, I got a little interrogation of my own from Warrick. He commented that I should be careful about coming in wearing the same clothes as the day before, especially when I walk in with you. He said people will talk."  
  
Nick interjected, "Sounds like they already are, Sara."  
  
"Hey, we'd better go find Brass so we can talk to the driver. I'll go grab the stuff that Warrick and I got earlier. Meet you there." Sara said as she breezed out of the lab and down the hall.  
  
Several minutes later, Nick and Sara were seated talking with Ed Connley. He explained exactly how he kept track of passengers as they came on the bus. With his help they were able to determine who his regulars were and who held LV Transit cards. By the end of shift they had determined that all but three of the twenty-seven passengers had paid by the card. The three others, one of which was their vic Michael Stone, had paid cash. They had compiled a list of the twenty-four card bearing passengers, they only had two unidentified passengers, and according to the driver, one of those was an elderly woman who was an infrequent regular. She sat near the front of the bus, making it implausible for her to be a suspect on several levels. Brass would contact the list of the twenty-four other passengers that they had identified and ask them to come in for questioning.  
  
Nick and Sara left the interview room and made their way down the hall toward the break room. As they entered, Grissom looked up from a file that he was reading. "How did the interview with the driver go?"  
  
Sara answered, "Good. We've got twenty-four of the twenty-seven passengers identified, oh, twenty-five if you count the vic. Only three cash fares, one of which was the vic, and one of the others is an elderly woman who sat near the front. So if we can identify our twenty-seventh passenger, we may have our killer."  
  
"Has anyone printed the money from the fare collection device from the bus?" Grissom inquired with pursed lips and a single eyebrow raised.  
  
Sara and Nick exchanged glances. "Right on it, Gris." Nick replied as the two of them left the break room headed toward evidence storage. "I hate it when he does that."  
  
Sara just smiled and laughed, "That's Grissom for you." 


	17. The Bus

Grissom was still sitting in the break room looking over a file when Catherine walked in. "Hey, Gris."  
  
"Catherine," he acknowledged without looking up.  
  
Catherine got a coffee cup out and poured herself a cup of coffee which appeared to be reasonably fresh and then sat down at the table with Grissom. "Anything interesting in there, Gil?"  
  
Grissom looked up with a startled glance. "Oh, sorry, Catherine. I was just going over the coroner's report trying to see if there's anything we've missed."  
  
"Mobley still on your back?" Catherine questioned sipping at her coffee.  
  
"Like sands through the hour glass, so are the days of our lives." He responded coyly.  
  
"I'll take that as a yes." Catherine took another sip. "So what do we know for sure?"  
  
Grissom summarized, "Well our vic's throat was slashed so he couldn't call out for help, not that it would have mattered. He bled out and died within a few minutes. No defensive wounds either. So maybe he was asleep, or knew the killer."  
  
"And nobody even noticed?" Catherine queried.  
  
"Catherine, have you ever ridden the bus?" Grissom replied.  
  
"No," Catherine looked at him with a quizzical expression. "That's why I have a car."  
  
Grissom raised an eyebrow before continuing, "There is an entire subculture on public transportation. There is a unspoken code of conduct that people adhere to. People may sit next to each other every day, but rarely speak. Most people read or put headphones to shut everyone else out, some even nap. They like to sit in the same spot, day after day. If you don't ride the bus very often, you might shake things up by sitting in the wrong place. A bus is really a collection of people traveling alone." Grissom shared.  
  
"Fascinating," Catherine said sarcastically. "So in other words, it is possible to commit murder in front of twenty-seven people, and have no one see anything?"  
  
"Except our killer," Grissom smiled boyishly. 


	18. Fuming

Nick and Sara entered the evidence room and found the bag they were looking for. The money from the bus was an odd assortment of rumpled dollar bills and coins. Since most passengers in this day in age paid using the LV Transit cards, it made the task a bit less daunting. Deciding to focus on the bills for the moment they took the money to the print lab and began the arduous process of fuming each bill. The coins would come later. As they processed the money, it became clear that they would be very lucky to get a clear print. As money changed hands so frequently, the overlap of fingerprints on the bills created a mottled look on George Washington's face.  
  
"You know, I may never touch another dollar bill as long as I live. Look at how many people have touched these things." Sara commented.  
  
"You can't spray Non-Oxinal 9 on everything, Sara." Nick teased.  
  
"Very funny, Stokes." Sara returned her attention to the bills.  
  
As they finished fuming the last bill, they decided to scan the bills and try and separate the individual prints and check them in AFIS before proceeding with the coins. After they had separated each print, keeping track of which bill it had come off of, they began to run them through AFIS. In short order they had a match off of one of the bills, but it turned out to be their vic. A few minutes later, they had another match off the same bill, the vic's older son Robby. Probably printed in a youth identification program with the local school district. On the next bill, they had some clear prints, but nothing that matched anything in AFIS. As they went through each bill, the story was pretty much the same, an occasional hit with the name of a child who had been fingerprinted in a school drive. On the last bill, they entered a fingerprint into the system and soon had a match. AFIS came up with the name of Doug Singleton, address unknown.  
  
Grissom chose that moment to pop her head into the print lab. "How's it going in here?"  
  
Sara turned and smiled at Catherine, "Got a name. Doug Singleton. No address. Also, got our vic's, no surprise there, and a couple of kids, probably from the fingerprinting drives the schools do every year."  
  
Nick added, "We haven't fumed the coins yet though, so we don't know if we might get any additional prints off those."  
  
"I'll get Warrick to help out with the fuming, and Catherine and I will see if we can run down your Doug Singleton." Grissom assigned.  
  
"Sure thing, boss." Nick answered for both of them.  
  
Grissom left as quickly as he appeared. Nick and Sara finished with the prints from the last bill, no more matches were made in AFIS. Warrick entered the print lab, "Grissom tells me you could use some help."  
  
Sara smiled up at Warrick, "Yeah, we've got to fume those coins and then see if any of the prints are viable."  
  
"Let's hit it." Warrick said as he joined the other two CSIs.  
  
After they had fumed all of the coins, they found only four coins with anything resembling a print. Warrick scanned each coin and with a wizardry that was his special talent, he was able to remove the smudges from several otherwise useless prints. He, Sara, and Nick ran the prints through AFIS, but found no matches.  
  
"So, where are we at now?" Warrick asked wearily.  
  
"Dead end, unless Grissom and Catherine come up with something on our Doug Singleton." Sara replied.  
  
"Why don't we all take a break and get some coffee. Maybe by then, Catherine and Grissom will be back." Nick suggested.  
  
"Alright, man. Hopefully, Sanders has made some coffee recently, I don't want any of that swill the dayshift calls coffee." Warrick grinned and headed out of the print lab with Nick and Sara close behind. 


	19. Suspect?

Grissom and Catherine had located an address for Doug Singleton. They had called Brass and he went with them to the house. It was about 7:00am on Sunday. The house was not too far from Michael Stone's, not surprising since the bus 394 serviced the neighborhood. Brass knocked on the front door and a slender, slightly balding man in his mid-forties, coffee cup in one hand answered.  
  
"Doug Singleton?" Brass asked.  
  
"Yes," he answered.  
  
"Jim Brass, LVPD. This is Gil Grissom and Catherine Willows from the Crime Lab," Brass explained, flashing his badge.  
  
"What can I do for you folks?" Doug Singleton asked.  
  
Brass responded, "We'd like to ask you some questions if you don't mind."  
  
"Sure, come on in." He showed them into the house, a house that was the same floor plan as every other house on the street, with minor variations. The home was impeccably neat and organized.  
  
As the trio seated themselves on the couch, Mr. Singleton took a seat a chair on the opposite side of the coffee table from the couch.  
  
"Mr. Singleton, do you ride the 394 bus out of downtown?" Grissom began.  
  
"Yeah, I ride it about once a week, I don't schedule client meetings for Fridays." He explained.  
  
Brass continued, "Mr. Singleton, did you ride the 394 on Friday evening?"  
  
"Uh, no. I take the 394 home around 3:00 because I only work a half day on Fridays. I work nine hour days the rest of the week. Oh, my, that's the bus they guy was killed on." He answered with a shocked look on his face.  
  
"That is correct. We found your fingerprints on money used to pay for bus fare on the 394 that day. We're trying to get in contact with anyone who rode the bus on the 5:00 run to see if they remember anything unusual. Can anyone verify your whereabouts on Friday?" Catherine continued.  
  
"Uh, yeah. Let me give you my business card, you can call my boss, Harold Stevens. He and I had a meeting right before I left on Friday." Doug Singleton handed his business card over to Catherine.  
  
"And where did you go after work?" Brass pressed  
  
"I came home, as usual. My wife wasn't feeling well, so she asked me to pick up a prescription for her at the pharmacy. Since I was going out, my daughter asked if I could drop her and a couple of her friends at the movie theater down by the mall. I dropped the girls off at the theater, went and picked up the prescription, got gas, and stopped by Costco on the way back to pick the girls up from the movies." he fumbled around in his wallet he continued talking, "Oh, here they are. I've got my receipts from Friday right here."  
  
He handed the receipts over to Brass. Brass perused them and handed them back to Doug Singleton. "Thank you for your time, Mr. Singleton. Sorry to have bothered you at such an early hour."  
  
"No problem. We get up early on Sundays, my daughter has soccer practice at 7:00." He explained.  
  
The trio stood up and made their way to the door. As they walked back to the Tahoe, Brass asked, "Where does that put us now?"  
  
"Square one." Grissom answered putting his sunglasses on and getting behind the wheel. 


	20. The Discovery Channel

Nick, Sara, and Warrick sat in the break room sipping coffee. They had indeed found Greg's coffee and were luxuriating in its rich taste. Nick and Sara kept stealing glances at each other and occasionally would catch each other and blush. This did not go by unnoticed by Warrick who chuckled to himself.  
  
Finishing her coffee, Sara stood and placed her cup in the sink, "Hey, guys, since we're sort of at a standstill and Grissom and Catherine aren't back yet, I'm going to go grab a shower and change my clothes." As Warrick raised his eyebrows at her as if he was about to say something she said with a smirk, "And you can keep your DB comments to yourself, Warrick." She grinned and walked out of the break room toward the locker room and showers.  
  
Warrick turned and observed Nick who was still sipping at his coffee. "So, Nick, why did you oversleep last night, man?"  
  
"Oh, I just fell asleep on the couch watching the Discovery Channel, so I didn't get a chance to set my alarm." He explained.  
  
Warrick just laughed. "Really." A statement more than a question.  
  
"Why do you find that so hard to believe?" Nick asked, "Everyone's always telling me I watch too much of the Discovery Channel."  
  
"Oh, I believe it alright, I just find it pretty coincidental that Sara's got the same story." Warrick smugly answered.  
  
A tinge of pink crept into Nick's face and he choked on the coffee he had just sipped, "What are you saying, Warrick?" He challenged.  
  
Warrick chuckled as he saw the color in Nick's face, "I'm not saying anything, your face tells the whole story."  
  
Nick kept silent, trying not to smile.  
  
Warrick continued, "Hey, I just spent the last three hours with you and Sara. You think I don't notice when two people are trying not to look at each other? Give it up man. What I want to know is what happened between you two after shift yesterday."  
  
With an embarrassed smile, Nick replied, "A gentleman doesn't kiss and tell, Warrick."  
  
"Oh, so there was kissing involved." Warrick interrupted with a glint in his eye.  
  
Nick defended, "Warrick, it's not what you think, man."  
  
"So why don't you tell me what it is then?" Warrick pressed.  
  
Nick, knowing that Warrick wasn't going to stop questioning until he got the whole story, thought he'd at least give him part of the story, leaving some very personal details out. "I invited Sara over for breakfast and we fell asleep on the couch watching the Discovery Channel. End of story."  
  
"Why do I get the feeling you're leaving some important details out?" Warrick queried.  
  
"That's all there is to it, man." Nick tried to sound convincing.  
  
"Yeah, and the Pope's decided to convert to Buddhism." Warrick answered, narrowing his eyes. "Ok, explain why when I called and woke you up I heard Catherine's entire conversation with Sara over your phone."  
  
Nick looked over at Warrick with a serious expression on his face, "Seriously, Warrick, it's not what you think."  
  
Seeing the change of expression on Nick's face, Warrick changed his own tone, "So what is it, man?"  
  
Color once again crept into Nick's cheeks as he answered, "I don't know what it is. Right now it's not anything. I mean it's Sara. It's complicated. But it's still not what you think. We did not sleep together. I mean we slept, but it was on the couch, with all of our clothes on." He gave Warrick a look that told him he wasn't giving up any more information.  
  
Warrick chuckled, "Ok, man, you don't have to tell me anymore. Want me to pull Catherine off your back too?"  
  
Nick just laughed. 


	21. Back to the Evidence

Sara felt amazingly refreshed after her shower. She meandered back down to the break room where Grissom and Catherine had joined Nick and Warrick. Grissom was in the middle of briefing them all about what had happened at Doug Singleton's home. Sara spoke as she entered, "So, if Doug Singleton's not a viable suspect, then where does that leave us?" She walked over grabbed a cup and filled it with coffee as Grissom answered.  
  
"Back to the evidence, Sara." Grissom raised an eyebrow as if stating the obvious.  
  
Warrick interjected, "What do we know for sure at this point?"  
  
Catherine answered, "Well our vic wasn't a regular bus rider. So he paid cash."  
  
"Yeah, we found his prints on one of the bills in the fare box." Nick added.  
  
"Yeah, but why did he sit at the back of the bus?" Sara wondered aloud.  
  
"What was that, Sara?" Grissom asked surprised.  
  
She looked up and then around at the rest of the group before she continued. "Why did he sit at the back of the bus. Well dressed professional, first time on the bus, why did he sit at the back. I mean it was full, but not too crowded. When I lived in San Francisco, I took the bus now and then and you could always tell who the infrequent riders were by where they sat. You don't sit in the back if you aren't sure where you're getting off, you sit in the front."  
  
Nick just smiled with a Texas sized grin, "Yeah, who did he know on the bus. That would be the only way he'd sit back there. I mean we could see from the video tape that there was room near the front of the bus. I think he knew whoever sat in the back seat of that bus."  
  
Catherine spoke up, "I think we need to talk to Rhonda Stone again. She might be able to give us information on who her husband knew on that bus."  
  
Grissom considered this for a minute, "Nick and Sara, I want you to go with Catherine to go see Rhonda Stone. Bring the stills from the bus video and see if she recognizes anyone. Warrick, I want you to go back over the rest of the evidence and with a fresh set of eyes. We have less 24 hours until the morning commute. I assume you all realize we're working a double shift."  
  
The team just smiled in response to this, they hadn't even considered going home.  
  
"What are you going to do, Grissom?" Catherine queried.  
  
"I've got a meeting with Mobely." He said in reply.  
  
Warrick headed off down the hall towards one of the layout rooms to see if he could put a new spin on the evidence they had gathered. Grissom left to meet with Mobley to brief him on what they had so far. Catherine, Nick, and Sara headed out to talk to Rhonda Stone, with Catherine behind the wheel of the Tahoe.  
  
As the trio settled into the SUV, Catherine asked, "Didn't I hear that one of the sets of prints you identified belonged to the vic's older son?"  
  
Sara responded from the backseat, "Yeah, but it was on the same bill our vic's prints were found on. We found prints of several other children, you know how the school districts do those fingerprint drives. Most of the prints we found were either too smudged or not in AFIS."  
  
Catherine looked over at Nick who had a very contemplative look on his face, "What is it, Nick?"  
  
Nick looked over at Catherine and then back at Sara, "Just a theory."  
  
Catherine replied, "Feel like sharing?"  
  
Grinning back he replied, "Not just yet."  
  
Shortly, they pulled into the driveway of Rhonda Stone. They made their way to the door and Catherine knocked. Rhonda Stone opened the door, "Catherine, Mr. Stokes."  
  
Nick took the lead, "Mrs. Stone, this is Sara Sidle who works with us at the Crime Lab. We wondered if we could come in and ask you some more questions."  
  
Rhonda Stone opened the door wide, "Of course, come in." She showed them into the living room where the morning sunlight was streaming in.  
  
Sara spoke first, "Mrs. Stone, we've been doing video analysis on the tape we collected from the surveillance camera on the bus. Mr. Stokes and I have put together still photos from the video of each of the people on the bus. We were hoping that you could take a look at these and see if you recognize anyone."  
  
Rhonda Stone looked up with tears at the corner of her eyes, "Of course, Ms. Sidle." Sara handed her the still photos. Rhonda Stone looked at them one by one, setting them down on the coffee table when she had finished. She had three left when she paused to examine one of them more closely. She looked up wit a bewildered expression on her face.  
  
"What is it, Mrs. Stone?" Catherine asked.  
  
"This looks like Robby. This looks like his hat" She handed the photo over to Catherine pointing the baseball cap in the photo.  
  
"Does your son ride the bus?" Nick queried looking over at the photo, which showed a young man with a baseball cap with the logo of a local high school.  
  
"Yeah, he does, he's got a job at a pet store near the mall and we thought it would be good for him to ride the bus until he could afford his own car." She answered.  
  
"Does your son have an LV Transit card?" Sara asked.  
  
Rhonda Stone looked at her and answered, "No, he gets rides with some of his friends and sometimes his boss gives him a ride, he only rides the bus when he can't get a ride."  
  
"Are you sure this is your son, Mrs. Stone?" Nick asked gently.  
  
"Yes, I mean, I know that is his hat, his baseball team made the district playoffs and they all got special hats. He never leaves home without it." She replied.  
  
Sara interjected, "Where is your son now, Mrs. Stone?"  
  
"He's at work, they have a staff meeting once a week and sometimes he goes in early to help with inventory. I think he just likes it because it's a pet store and we would never allow him to have one because of Mike and Ryan's allergies." She answered.  
  
Catherine added, "Mrs. Stone, we're going to want to talk to Robby, and see if he saw anything on the bus that day. Could you give me a call when he gets home."  
  
"Of course, he should be home about 3:00." Rhonda Stone answered.  
  
"Mrs. Stone, thank you for your time." Nick finished for them. The trio got up and headed to the front door where Rhonda Stone showed them out.  
  
As they settled themselves into the Tahoe, Nick turned and looked at Catherine and Sara, "Hey, you two I'm thinking about adopting a pet, want to help me pick out a cat?"  
  
Catherine gave him a quizzical look, "Nick, we're in the middle of a murder investigation."  
  
Sara caught on quicker, "How much is that doggie in the window?"  
  
Nick flashed her a huge smile, "Exactly."  
  
Catherine laughed, "Ok, Nicky, let's go to the mall." 


	22. Busted

Warrick had gone over the evidence twice now and nothing new stood out to him. Grissom had popped his head in to see how things were going, "Anything, Warrick?" "Nothing." Warrick replied adding, "I hope the others are having better luck."  
  
"Well, I just got a call from Sara, they're heading to the mall to help Nick pick out a cat." Grissom smirked.  
  
"What?" Warrick was confused.  
  
"The vic's son works there and after showing his wife the stills from the bus, she's convinced the son was in one of them. They're just going to do a little fishing." Grissom replied.  
  
Warrick chuckled at the idea of Nick owning a cat.  
  
"Warrick, try seeing if you can dig a little deeper on our vic and see if there is anything about his family life we haven't uncovered yet." He turned and walked out of the layout room toward his office.  
  
Meanwhile at the mall, Nick, Sara, and Catherine had arrived in front of the pet store, which had just opened. It was a chain store, bright, clean, and highly organized. In the front windows puppies and kittens napped. Before they entered, Catherine suggested that Nick and Sara stick together and she would wander the aisles.  
  
Catherine was the first to enter. She walked up and down the aisles taking in the amount of merchandise targeted toward animals. It was slow, and the employees were puttering around stocking shelves, not really expecting too many people this early.  
  
Nick and Sara entered and Catherine could hear them from her vantage point. "Oh, Nicky, look at this little fluff ball over here. He's so cute."  
  
Catherine could hear Nick chuckle at Sara. Nice, she thought to herself, they're playing the couple angle, and it seems to come so naturally too. Catherine laughed to herself.  
  
Nick and Sara looked the part of the eager pet owner to be. Sara kept pointing at different kittens and Nick would give his opinions. Pretty soon, a young man stepped over to help them. His nametag identified him as Robby Stone. "Can I help you?" he inquired.  
  
"Yeah, can we see that gray fluff ball there," Nick pointed at the kitten Sara had been cooing at and then smiled over at her.  
  
Robby opened the display window and pulled out the gray kitten and handed it to Nick. "Here you go sir, he is a cute one, I've been begging my mom to let me have one, but my dad and my brother are allergic so I can't."  
  
Trying not to sound too interested in Robby's comment, Nick replied, "Oh, that's too bad. My cousin had the same problem, his brother was allergic to dogs so they couldn't have one. They always thought he'd be allergic too, but he was adopted, so he was lucky that way."  
  
Robby answered as he continued to pet the kitten, "Really, wow what a coincidence, I'm adopted too."  
  
Sara took the kitten from Nick and smiled at him with doe eyes as she cuddled with it, "Can I have it, Nicky?"  
  
He winked at her and replied, "I don't know, Sara, I thought we were just looking today. We need to get a few things first before we can bring one of these babies home."  
  
"Well, just let me know if I can help you with anything else," Robby offered as Sara handed the kitten back to him so he could it back in the window.  
  
Nick put his arm around Sara's shoulder and looked down at her saying, "Come on, Sara, let's go, ok."  
  
"Ok, Nicky," She replied grinning at him playing at the collar of his shirt.  
  
They exited the store and were joined shortly by Catherine, who had taken in the entire exchange inside the store. "You two ready to go, or do we need to go by the malt shop first?"  
  
Nick's face flushed slightly at Catherine's teasing, "No, Catherine. Just playing a cover."  
  
"Yeah, you look like you've had a little practice," She replied noticing that Nick's arm was still around Sara's shoulder.  
  
Sara's face was flushed with a little color, "Hey, uh, let's get back to headquarters so we can brief Grissom." She set off ahead of them toward the Tahoe.  
  
Once they were settled in the Tahoe, Catherine turned and looked at Nick and Sara. "Ok, you two, spill it."  
  
"Whatever do you mean, Catherine?" Nick smiled pleasantly back at her.  
  
"Yeah, I don't know what you're getting at, Cath." Sara added.  
  
Catherine grinned wryly, "Last night, both of you late for work, cell phones, do I need to go any further?"  
  
"What are you getting at, Catherine?" Nick asked innocently.  
  
"Are you two sleeping together?" Catherine asked bluntly as she turned the key in the ignition.  
  
Nick and Sara both turned red and exchanged glances. "It's not what you think, Cath." Sara defended.  
  
"Really," She responded dryly pulling out of the parking lot.  
  
"Catherine, I invited Sara over for breakfast after shift. We ate, we watched TV, and we fell asleep on the couch, fully clothed. End of story." Nick said firmly.  
  
"Yeah, I was so tired I fell asleep while we were watching the New Detectives marathon on Discovery and I didn't wake up until you called me." Sara added. "So you see it's not what you think."  
  
"Why do I get the feeling that you're not telling me the whole story?" Catherine queried remembering the heavy breathing she'd heard over the phone.  
  
Nick rolled his eyes, "Catherine."  
  
"Ok, I'll drop it." Catherine replied adding, "for now."  
  
They drove the remainder of the way back to CSI headquarters in relative silence. As they pulled into the lot, Catherine stated, "I'll go find Grissom, I think we're going to need to call Brass. I'll see you guys in the break room in 10 minutes."  
  
"Ok." Nick replied. Sara didn't make a sound, she had fallen asleep in the backseat. "I'll wake up Sleeping Beauty back here."  
  
Catherine grinned back at him, "You do realize what Prince Charming woke Sleeping Beauty up with don't you?"  
  
Nick not sure what she was getting at replied, "No."  
  
Catherine laughed and replied over her shoulder, " A kiss, Nick" before heading toward the building, leaving Nick with a red face.  
  
Nick climbed out of the Tahoe and opened the back door where Sara was seated. "Hey, Sara. Sara." He shook her shoulder. "Sara."  
  
In a sleepy voice Sara spoke, "No, Nicky, I don't want to get up. Stay with me for a few more minutes."  
  
Nick chuckled. "Sara, we need to get inside and brief Grissom."  
  
With her eyes still closed, she said, "Don't want Grissom, want you."  
  
Nick leaned into the Tahoe and unbuckled Sara's seatbelt. He placed one hand on her waist and the other on her shoulder, "Sara."  
  
With that Sara's eyes fluttered open and she smiled. "Nick, was I sleeping? I had the best dream."  
  
"Really, what did you dream about?" Nick asked with a twinkle in his eye.  
  
"You." Sara smiled reaching up to caress his cheek with her right hand.  
  
Nick grinned and moved his hand from her shoulder to cup her cheek in his hand. Slowly, they moved toward each other glancing occasionally from each other's eyes to their lips. With a jolt, their lips connected in a soft kiss. Sara snaked her free arm around Nick's neck to pull him closer. He deepened the kiss. Sara allowed her lips to part and they began to explore each other's mouths as their tongues danced.  
  
They weren't aware of how much time had passed until they heard someone clearing their throat. They turned to find Catherine and Warrick standing there with amused grins on their faces. Catherine broke the awkward moment, "So, is this still not what I thought? You two are so busted." 


	23. Truth is Stranger than Fiction

Red-faced, Nick and Sara released their embrace to face Catherine and Warrick, Catherine's comment still hanging fresh in the air. Catherine looked amused, "You know as much as I'd like to continue torturing you two, we need to brief Grissom. I've called Brass and he'll be here in 5 minutes. Why don't you two pull yourselves together and come inside."  
  
Sara climbed out of the Tahoe and closed the door. Up to this point, Warrick hadn't said anything other than to chuckle to himself. "You know, it's about time you two did something about this."  
  
Nick looked over at Warrick with a quizzical glance.  
  
Warrick responded, "Don't give me that man. It's not like you haven't been flirting shamelessly with Sara since she first got here." In response to Sara opening her mouth to speak, he replied, "Oh, and Sara, you haven't exactly been immune to Nicky's charms either."  
  
Nick and Sara looked at each other as if to try and protest that either of them had done such a thing, but catching each other's eyes they just smiled.  
  
Catherine interjected, "Ok, ok. Let's get inside. We have a murder to solve, then you two can go back to doing whatever it is you've been doing when you're not here. I don't think Grissom would take too kindly to find two of his CSIs making out in the backseat of the Tahoe."  
  
The four CSIs made their way into the building, down the hall into the break room where Grissom and Brass were waiting. "I hear you have some new information." Grissom queried.  
  
Nick took the lead, "Yeah, after we showed Rhonda Stone the video stills from the bus, she said she recognized her son Robby. We asked where he was and she indicated he was at work at a pet store. I thought it was strange that he was working so shortly after his father's death, so we decided to go check up on Robby. He didn't seem too broken up about his father's death, he acted as if it was just another day at work. He seemed more interested in the cat he couldn't take home as a pet. I got a very interesting piece of information though. In conversation he mentioned that he was adopted."  
  
Sara continued, "So since his mother believes he was on the bus at the same time her husband was, that might give credence to why he sat at the back of the bus. If his son was already on the bus, he'd be inclined to go sit with him. Since Robby says he's adopted, that might explain why we found his prints on the money, but we didn't get a familial DNA match from the foreign DNA found on the vic's clothes."  
  
Brass interrupted, "I think we have enough circumstantial evidence to get a warrant for his DNA. I'm going to go pick him up for questioning."  
  
Just then, Catherine's phone rang, "Willows. Yes, Mrs. Stone. I'd appreciate that. Ok, then, we'll see you in about 20 minutes. Great." She looked over at the rest of the team which had stopped to observe the call. "That was Rhonda Stone, she's bringing Robby in so we can question him. They'll be here in about 20 minutes."  
  
True to her word, Rhonda Stone brought her son Robby in for questioning. Brass interviewed the boy with his mother present. He asked Robby whether he was on the bus that day. He indicated that he was. Brass asked Rhonda Stone if Robby was adopted. She confirmed that he was. "Mrs. Stone, I'm afraid that I'm going to have to get a DNA sample from Robby. I can either get your consent, or I'll need to get a warrant. Since he's a minor, you have the right to waive his right here."  
  
Rhonda Stone contemplated her son briefly. He was just staring at the table where he fiddled with his fingers. He didn't say a word. Rhonda Stone looked back up at Brass and just nodded.  
  
Catherine entered the interview room and walked over to Robby, "I need you to open your mouth." He looked up and complied, his eyes ready to spill over. Catherine swabbed in the inside of his cheek, "All done. Thanks." She capped the swab and left the room headed down the hall to the DNA lab, where she had Greg put a rush on the analysis.  
  
Brass left Rhonda and Robby Stone alone in the interview room. Grissom, Nick, and Sara watched from the observation room behind a two way mirror. The pair in the interview room occasionally looked at each other, but remained silent. The trio behind the glass studied the pair. Nick broke the silence, "I can't even imagine."  
  
"Yeah," Sara echoed his sentiments.  
  
"It's still circumstantial at this point, we don't have the DNA results back yet." Grissom reminded.  
  
Catherine entered the room, "Yes, we do. It's a match to the foreign DNA we found on the vic. I'm going to suggest that we get a sample of the carpet from the display window at the pet store to compare to our mystery sample."  
  
Nick interjected, "Already did, Catherine. When I was holding that kitten, he left a little bit of evidence behind on my shirt. Greg is analyzing it."  
  
"Oh, so that's why Sara was picking at your collar." Catherine stated with a smile on her face.  
  
"Among other things," Sara confessed to a smiling Nick, a grinning Catherine, and a shocked Grissom.  
  
Grissom put his professional face back on, "I'll get Brass." And he walked out of the observation room. A few minutes later, he and Brass entered the interview room.  
  
"Mrs. Stone, I'm Gil Grissom. We have evidence to show that Robby was on the bus when your husband was murdered."  
  
The shock registered on her face, and then the tears began to flow as she looked over at her son.  
  
"We also believe," he continued, "that Robby was sitting next to your husband when he was murdered."  
  
Rhonda Stone looked at her son with a gaze of confusion, "Robby, you saw who killed your father? Why didn't you say anything?"  
  
"Mrs. Stone," Brass interrupted, "we believe that your son Robby was the one who killed your husband. We found his DNA on your husband's clothing."  
  
A look of shock and horror came over her face. "Robby?"  
  
The boy looked up at his mother, now an angry expression covering his face, tears threatening.  
  
"Robby!" as realization dawned over Rhonda Stone, "Why!?"  
  
"He wouldn't let me have a cat." And Robby Stone broke down sobbing.  
  
From behind the two way mirror, "Truth really is stranger than fiction." Catherine concluded. 


	24. Friends?

The Monday morning commute would commence in less than eight hours. The team of CSIs were exhausted. They had gathered in the break room to drink some of Greg's coffee and debrief themselves from the case. When Grissom had called Mobley to tell him the good new, he had instructed him to give the team the next shift off, he'd have the day crew cover for them.  
  
"Good work, everyone." Grissom congratulated. "I don't want to see any of you back here until the beginning of shift on Tuesday." He finished his coffee and placed his cup in the sink.  
  
"Hey, does anyone want to go get breakfast down at the diner?" Catherine suggested.  
  
"Good idea, Catherine," Grissom responded.  
  
"I'm in." Warrick added.  
  
"Sure," Nick intoned.  
  
"Yeah, sounds good." Sara concluded.  
  
The group headed out of the break room and out into the parking lot, squinting in the sunlight. Grissom, Catherine, and Warrick headed to Catherine's Tahoe. Catherine gave Nick and Sara an inquisitive look. Nick responded with a smile, "We'll meet you there in a few minutes." Catherine and Warrick exchanged bemused grins, which Grissom took in with a raised eyebrow in question. Catherine whispered quietly to Grissom, "I'll fill you in on the way, Gil."  
  
Nick and Sara walked over to Sara's Tahoe. They paused at the driver's side door. Sara turned to face Nick, keys in hand. "Nick?"  
  
"Yeah, Sara?" Nick responded with a mischievous grin.  
  
"What's up?" Sara queried, wondering why Nick wasn't on the other side of the vehicle.  
  
"Oh, I just wanted to talk to you about something before we went and got breakfast." He winked.  
  
She smiled and crossed her arms in front of her as she leaned against the door of the Tahoe. "And just what did you want to talk to me about, Stokes."  
  
Standing just a little closer to her, he answered, "Oh, I just wanted to say something."  
  
She raised an eyebrow, silently asking him to continue.  
  
"Sara, you're one of my best friends," Nick began placing a hand on the Tahoe behind her, Sara smiled. "But I don't think that we can be friends anymore."  
  
A look of confusion momentarily crossed Sara's face until she noticed the glint in Nick's eye. "Oh, and why is that, Mr. Stokes?"  
  
A Texas sized grin broke over Nick's face as he replied with a wink, placing his other hand behind her on the SUV, "Because friends don't get to do this." With that he leaned in and gently kissed her. Sara smiled into the kiss and grabbed Nick's belt, pulling him closer. Nick smiled and broke the kiss momentarily resting his forehead against Sara's, "Does that mean you want to be my girlfriend, Sara?"  
  
She smiled back, "Yeah." And then snaked her arms around his neck to pull him back into a kiss. Tender at first, but as each of them parted lips, the kiss became deeper more passionate. Their tongues explored and their hands caressed as Sara leaned back against the Tahoe, Nick pressed up against her.  
  
They weren't sure just how much time had passed when the phone on Nick's belt rang, "Stokes," he said somewhat breathless.  
  
It was Warrick, "Hey, Nick, if you think you can take a break from kissing Sara, we'll go ahead and order for you."  
  
Nick looked at Sara with a look that said they were busted, "Yeah, Warrick, we'll be right there." 


End file.
